Drunk Driver's Plea Turned Down

George Scully Jr. showed little emotion during much of his trial on charges that his drunken driving caused him to roll his car, killing a teenage passenger.

During his testimony, his responses were concise and direct. When he was convicted Oct. 28, he showed little reaction.

But on Wednesday, before he was sentenced to three years in prison, Scully, 20, of Mt. Prospect, decided to apologize to the parents of the girl who died.

"I beg for your forgiveness," he said. "Please try to understand how bad I feel for all of you."

For the parents of Shannon Eggert of Mt. Prospect, who was 17 when she died in the crash, Scully's words did little to ease the pain. Jan and George Eggert attended every court proceeding since the April 4, 1992, accident, during which they formed a harsher image of George Scully.

"The judge was incredibly insightful on Scully's character in being able to get past what he said to his real character," Jan Eggert said. "I'm just happy that we won't have to come here every month anymore and see his face."

Cook County Circuit Judge Margaret O'Hara Frossard imposed a 3-year sentence on the drunken driving conviction during Wednesday's hearing in the Skokie courthouse.

Frossard admonished Scully for his apology. "Your statement is incredible . . . and totally self-serving," she said. "It was your consumption of alcohol that caused the accident that killed Shannon Eggert."

The maximum sentence came despite pleas from Scully's attorney that his client has been pressured to join a gang while awaiting sentencing in Cook County Jail, that he suffers from ulcers and other medical problems, and that he fears for his life behind bars.

With maximum time off for good behavior, Scully could be released in 18 months.

"I hope this will be a deterrent for other people and perhaps save some lives," Assistant State's Atty. Jonathon Lerner said after the sentencing. "I hope people learn that drinking and driving is very dangerous to us all."

Scully's mother, Kay Keller, and his stepfather, Sam Keller, declined to comment after the hearing.

On the night before the crash, Scully, Eggert and several other youths spent the evening drinking and partying, according to trial testimony.

Early on April 4, they went in Scully's Chevrolet S-10 Blazer to a bar in Stone Park called Interactions Lounge, where they were admitted without having identifications checked.

The amount Scully drank that night was never firmly established, but he admitted in his own trial testimony to drinking three to four beers all night, including one and a half glasses of beer at Interactions.

They left Interactions around 6:30 a.m. and headed for home. However, on Elm Street just north of Camp McDonald Road in Prospect Heights, he lost control of the Blazer, according to testimony.

The vehicle flipped over and Eggert, who was riding in a rear cargo area, apparently was thrown from the vehicle and was struck by it, police investigators believe. She was pronounced dead of head injuries later that day.

Scully fled on foot from the scene but was arrested a short time later. He refused to take a breath test at the Prospect Heights Police Station on his lawyer's advice, Scully testified during the trial.